The present invention relates to utility vehicle storage boxes. Specifically, the storage box has single hinged double secured compartments, a dual actuating cam latching design, which catches when the lid is open.
There is an overstated need in the industry to provide container and box arrangements to store and hold articles in a pickup truck bed. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,531,774 to Whatley; U.S. Pat. No. 4,936,624 to West; and U.S. Pat. No. 4,967,944 to Waters, which are incorporated by reference for their supportive teachings, show just a few of the proposed schemes for pickup truck mounted boxes and associated mounting structures. U.S. Pat. No. 5,484,092, to Cheney, is also incorporated by reference.
The theft of valuable articles from vehicles is an ever increasing reality of modern life. Thieves are particularly attracted to certain types of valuable articles. For example, many persons desire to keep sporting good articles, such as rifles, shotguns, and fishing rods, in a vehicle at all times to be ready for immediate use. Such sporting goods are particularly attractive targets for thieves and, due to their elongated size, cannot be effectively hidden (for example by covering with clothing), in a vehicle which does not have a securable trunk space.
The need for providing secure storage in a pickup truck, or other vehicle without a trunk space, is recognized in the art. Even further, U.S. Pat. No. 4,809,897 to Wright, also incorporated by reference for its illustrative teachings, provides a lockable storage compartment for use in a vehicle cab; thus recognizing the need for secure storage even inside a locked vehicle compartment.
There are, however, many disadvantages associated with the prior art designs. Disadvantageously, the Wright reference is unusable for storage of elongated, generally flat sporting goods such as rifles and fishing gear. Also, the device disclosed in the Wright reference does not effectively protect articles from damage due to impacts and provides inadequate protection from the weather if it were ever mounted exterior of the vehicle cab.
Additionally, the previously available storage devices provide inadequate security form theft, do not sufficiently protect valuable articles from damage, and/or are inconvenient to use.
Still another disadvantage of conventional vehicle storage boxes lies with the closing and securing of the lid to the main base compartment. To close the lid and secure it, the user must exert all the necessary force needed to lower the lid into its proper position for locking. This can be burdensome when items in the box offer any resistance because the box is too full. There is nothing in the design of conventional boxes to facilitate the closing and securing of the lid to the base compartment when the box is too full.
In view of the forgoing, it would be an advance in the art to provide a vehicle mounted storage box with a secured compartment for holding and protecting valuable sporting goods and other such articles from theft and damage and which is convenient to use. It would also be an advance in the art to provide a vehicle storage box that could be completely opened from either side of the vehicle. It would be yet another advancement in the art to provide a vehicle storage box that facilitates closing and locking of an overfilled box, thus alleviating the need for the user to exert all necessary force needed for closing and securing the lid.
It is a principle advantage of the present invention to provide a vehicle storage box which has single hinged double secured compartments, and has a dual actuating cam latching design, which catches when the lid is still open.
It is another advantage of the present invention to provide a vehicle storage box which facilitates closing and locking of an overfilled box, thus alleviating the need for the user to exert all necessary force needed for closing and securing the lid.
Still another advantage of the present invention is to provide a vehicle storage box which has a base structure, a lid, a divider means, a divider coupling means, and a lid coupling means.
Yet another advantage of the present invention is to provide a vehicle storage box which has a single hinge connecting a base structure, a divider means, and a lid, such that the lid and the divider means pivot around the same axis.
The vehicle storage box of the present invention comprises: a) a base structure; b) a lid, pivotally connected to the base structure, shaped to enclose the base structure; c) divider means, pivotally connected to the base structure, for dividing the storage box into two compartments for holding articles; d) divider coupling means, connected to the divider means and the lid, for releasably coupling the divider means to the lid; and e) lid coupling means, connected to the lid and the base structure, for releasably coupling the lid to the base structure, and having a first coupling position when the lid is in an opened position.
The lid coupling means comprises a lid latch coupled to the lid, and lid actuator means, rotatably coupled to the base structure, for engaging and latching the lid latch while in the first coupling, opened position.
The lid coupling means also comprises a first and second lid actuator and a first and second lid latch wherein the first and second lid actuators are coupled together by a lid actuator connector for simultaneous operation of the first and second lid actuators.
The divider coupling means comprises a first and second divider actuator coupled to the lid and a first and second divider latch coupled to the divider means wherein the first and second divider actuators are coupled together by a divider actuator connector for simultaneous operation of the first and second divider actuators.
The vehicle storage box according to the present invention also includes a single hinge connecting the base structure, the divider means and the lid, such that the lid and the divider means pivot around the same axis.
Additional advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments thereof, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.